Students that banned energy drinks sees detention plunge by a third

Dee Griffiths, headteacher at Haydock High School in Haydock, Merseyside (pictured with a group of Year 9 pupils), said there had been a marked change in pupils' behaviour since the school banned energy drinks.

A school that banned Red Bull and other energy drinks has seen the number of pupils being given detentions plunge by a third.

In the latest piece of evidence that the drinks can cause poor behaviour in the classroom, staff said standards were transformed after just two terms.

Drinks such as Monster, Red Bull and Relentless combine so much sugar and caffeine that Government advisers warn they make children hyperactive and difficult to control.

Some 500ml cans contain the equivalent of more than 13 teaspoons of sugar and 160mg of caffeine - about the same as in four cans of cola.

The ban was suggested by Year 8 pupils at Haydock High School in Merseyside. Head teacher Dee Griffiths said: "Research would suggest that levels of concentration among some young people are negatively affected by highly-sugared energy drinks.

"Some students who use these cannot learn at their best. The consumption of vast quantities of 'empty calories' can lead to health concerns, including obesity and dental issues."

To help encourage fellow pupils to ditch energy drinks, members of the school's student council designed a water bottle with the Friends of Haydock fundraising group.

Haydock High School (pictured) said pupils designed a new water bottle to encourage fellow students to give up energy drinks and opt for healthier choices instead. The school has noticed an improvement in behaviour.

These bottles were offered to pupils in return for a pledge to go further than the ban and steer clear of all fizzy, sugary drinks in exchange for water. In Years 7, 8 and 9, more than 95 per cent of pupils signed up, along with more than 70 per cent in Years 10 and 11.

As well as the fall in the number of detentions, achievement and general behaviour levels rose - a trend Mrs Griffiths put down to the ban. Councillor Andy Bowden, of St Helens council in Merseyside, said: "It is good to see it was the students themselves that recognised the effects high- caffeine drinks were having and the benefits drinking water as an alternative can have."

Earlier this year, restaurateur John Vincent - who founded the Leon fast-food chain and advised ministers on improving youngsters' nutrition - said: "The amount of sugar and caffeine in these drinks is effectively allowing drugs into schools.

"We don't do that and neither do we think that should be part of school life. It has a hugely damaging effect on their ability to concentrate, how they feel and it is having health effects."

Another school that reported improved behaviour after banning energy drinks is Chatsmore Catholic High School in Worthing, West Sussex, which in 2008 blamed them for pupils being noisy, late for lessons and failing to follow instructions.

Energy drinks have been widely criticised. A survey last year found that one in 20 teenagers goes to school on a can of energy drink rather than eating a healthy breakfast.

Former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne blamed them for the seizure her daughter Kelly had last year.

Manufacturers and retailers have a voluntary ban on the sale of the drinks to under-16s, but there is no law to stop children buying them.

A spokesman for the British Soft Drinks Association said that while most energy drinks contain no more caffeine than a typical cup of coffee, 'We are clear that energy drinks are not recommended for children, and we want to get that message across to young people and their parents".